Columbia and Boone County leaders considering tiny homes for potential shelter option in Mid-Missouri
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
Columbia and Boone County leaders are learning more about tiny homes and what they could look like in Mid-Missouri.
A city spokesperson said 10 city leaders visited Eden Village last week, a tiny home community in Springfield, Missouri. The group included City Manager De'Carlon Seewood, Police Chief Jill Schlude and Housing and Neighborhood Services Director Rebecca Thompson.
Eden Village is a tiny home model that began in 2018. Chief Visionary Officer Nate Schlueter said the goal is to work with volunteers and partner organizations to build relationships and communities for chronically homeless individuals.
"We're helping take people that are typically ignored and discarded in our communities and turning them into good neighbors," Schlueter said.
Eden Village's website said it provides homes within a gated neighborhood that also has a community center and garden. It also has on-site support services including a psychiatrist, psychiatric nurse, case managers and mental health providers.
Schlueter said Eden Village has two locations in Springfield. Locations built can include 50 tiny homes to ensure relationships can be built. Homes are 400-square feet and provide residents with permanent housing. He said most people who move into an Eden Village retain housing and don't go back on the streets.
He said to live there, people have to be chronically homeless, able to pay the monthly rent--which is $325 in Springfield--and want to live in a neighborhood-type atmosphere.
In Springfield's locations, one village has 31 homes and the other has 24 and one person typically lives in each home.
"(We're) looking to create a community safety net for people that have fallen and help them get back up and live modestly in a gated and beautiful neighborhood in America," Schlueter said.
There are Eden Village tiny home communities in 13 cities across the country. Schlueter said the costs and timeline differ from city-to-city, sometimes taking between one-to-three years and ranging from $1.9 million to more than $3 million.
Columbia City spokesperson Sydney Olsen said in an email the visit to Springfield was productive.
"Staff were able to learn about the program that provides permanent housing to those experiencing homelessness through a partnership with a non-profit," Olsen wrote. "Those City staff members who attended will schedule a time to debrief and discuss what they learned as well as what could be applicable in Columbia."
Boone County Commissioner Kip Kendrick was also on that trip, posting on X -- the social media platform formerly known as Twitter -- this weekend that he was impressed with Eden Village. Kendrick was not available for comment Monday.
Friday, I had the opportunity to travel to Springfield to tour @eden_village’s tiny home communities. Was wildly impressed with their success. Such a cost effective and meaningful way to provide housing and community for chronically homeless individuals. pic.twitter.com/c6echQSBgL
— Kip Kendrick (@Kip_Kendrick) March 24, 2024
Schlueter said Mid-Missouri leaders seemed keen on the idea of creating a tiny home village or something similar.
"They weren't blind to the reality of homelessness in your community, and they recognized that the only way to end homelessness is through housing," Schlueter said.
Last month, ABC 17 News reported the City of Columbia was looking into pallet shelters to help solve the homeless crisis. Olsen said the city is still researching both pallet shelters and tiny homes as potential shelter options in Columbia.
"We are currently researching infrastructure and how these resources are managed in other communities with the assistance of service providers," Olsen wrote.
City of Springfield spokesperson Cora Scott said in an email that the Eden Village model has worked for their community.
"In the two areas where we have Eden Villages, crime has actually decreased," Scott wrote. "The model works. And the best part is the positive impact it is having--the lifesaving impact--on the people served by there."
As of Feb. 21, the Boone County Coalition to End Homelessness said there were 261 homeless people in Boone County. One week ago, MoDOT cleared out a homeless camp along eastbound Interstate 70 near the Providence Road exit. A MoDOT spokesperson said it was being cleared due to safety concerns.
